Health Indicator Report of General Fertility Rate

Why Is This Important?

The general fertility rate is a more precise measure than the crude birth rate for tracking birth rate patterns. While the crude birth rate and the general fertility rate both look at the total number of live births among the population, the crude birth rate is calculated using the total population including the young, old, male, and female. The general fertility rate is calculated using only females of reproductive age, defined as ages 15 through 44 years, in the denominator. This results in a more sensitive indicator with which to study population growth and change.

Chart

Data Table

Data Notes

Notes

2017 data are preliminary and based on nearly 100% of registered births occurring in calendar year 2017, which were received and processed as of October 2, 2018. [[br]][[br]]
Data for White, Black, and Asian/Pacific Islander do not include Hispanics. Hispanic ethnicity includes persons of any race.

Other Views

Health Indicator Definition

Definition

Number of live births per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years

Numerator

Number of live births

Denominator

Total number of women aged 15-44 years in the population

Current Outlook

How Are We Doing?

The general fertility rate among New Jersey women is 59 births per 1,000 women of childbearing age. The rate varies widely across the state's counties from a low of 48 to a high of 90. Rates also vary by race/ethnicity. The rate among Hispanics (66.9) is significantly higher than the rates among other racial/ethnic groups.

How Do We Compare With the U.S.?

The general fertility rate among New Jersey women is slightly below that of the nation as a whole.

The information provided above is from the Department of Health's NJSHAD web site (https://nj.gov/health/shad). The information published
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